A bit delayed, but here's the update on Trapper's trip to Tulsa for the
AKC's National Agility Championship!!
Day 1: On the road!
Getting ready to leave home!
Trapper started out the trip as my co-pilot in his seatbelt :)
And soon, Trapper is crashed...
First rest stop in Kansas--love the pawprints :)
We stopped here to find the world's largest prairie dog, but alas, they were closed.
But I still got this great shot of Trapper :)
There's no road trip without jerky! Trapper liked it, too!
We made a stop to get some glass paint--made it fun to spot our fellow competitors en route.
Trapper moves to the backseat--I think this picture is too funny--he looks like he's pulling the blankets up--ha ha!
I have to say, Kansas has some nice rest stops! Trapper plays king of the mountain!
And lots of wind turbines!
How can that be comfortable??
After a full day on the road, we arrive in Wichita, KS!
Day 2: Tulsa!!
Sunrise on our morning walk before we head out
Are we there, yet?
So, I kept hearing this weird rattling noise (the drive was REALLY windy both days). I stopped and saw this--somehow the wind deflector cracked in two! Would have to deal with this when we arrived in Tulsa....
Tulsa!!
Tulsa by the River!
It's good to be out of the car!
Yay!! We're here!! Ready check in and get set up for tomorrow!
The venue was great--6 agility rings running all the time, and 1,300 dogs!!
Our stall--home away from home for the next 3 days
And the inside was nice, too!
It was really warm! Glad I brought shorts!
Trapper settling in :)
Great dinner out with friends!
Wow! That's some bright carpet in our hotel ;-D
Trapper playing with his new squirrel toy that I bought him :)
Very serious about the squirrel....
Day 3: Warm-Up Run & Time to Beat Run
Day 3 started early--we left at 6:30 since we were the 3rd dog to run in our ring.
That's exactly how I feel, Trapper!!
Our Warm-Up Run was exactly that--Trapper was pretty nervous and didn't want to get very far away from me. He even ran in and then back out of a tunnel--I joked later than he knew we had driven 10 hours to get there and was afraid I might be back in Kansas by the time he got out of the tunnel--LOL!
Our Time to Beat Run was a lot of fun! Only the #1 dog earned a bye into the Challengers Round, so this was, in a sense, a second Warm-Up Run. Trapper finished 13th/35.
And Trapper crashed....
A little hummus makes him feel better!
When I got back to the hotel, I removed the wind deflector....at least I wouldn't have to listen to it across northern Oklahoma and Kansas on the trip home!
Back at the hotel, relaxing with some popcorn and my pup!
My good boy giving me a smile after he enjoyed his treats :)
Waiting for it, waiting for it... :)
And now resting..
Day 4: Jumpers with Weaves & Standards Runs
Headed out for Day 4, bright & early!
We were 3rd dog on the line in our ring for the Jumpers run. Trapper did such a great job!! We were so in sync. Now that Trapper's 12, it's all about making the best path for him and his body, whether or not it's the fastest. So, I may have been the only handler who did a landing side rear cross before the triple, but it gave Trapper time to adjust, and he read it beautifully! I was super proud of how well he took the backside of the jump after the weaves, since haven't practiced that as much as we should have. I was so happy, so thankful in the moment, that I had tears in my eyes as I ran the line of those last 3 jumps. The joy I get running Trapper after all the health issues he's had, and all the behavioral issues we've worked through is like no other joy I've ever experienced :) Trapper finished 11th.
My good boy giving me a smile after he enjoyed his treats :)
Our Standard Run was so fun! There were definitely some tricky parts, and Trapper handled them like a champ! His contacts were great. You can't see it in the video, but when Trapper was in the tunnel and I was waiting to send him to the tire, I got the biggest grin on my face--I was just enjoying the fact that we were here, running agility at Nationals and being competitive! Without chemo, Trapper wouldn't even have been alive for Nationals!
Trapper finished 14th.
Here's where Trapper was placed overall after 2 of 3 runs--he had perfect scores, and was 14th place out of 35. Thankfully, one of my friends reminded me that if we wanted to make it into the Challengers round, we'd have to up our placement
on the 3rd and final run tomorrow....
Now THAT is a tired dog!!
Asleep while sitting up :)
We finished our runs in the early afternoon, so Trapper and I headed out
to see the sights in Tulsa.
We went for a walk by the Arkansas River....
Found this awesome sculpture of mama bear and her 3 cubs
Whoa! Where did that 4th bear cub come from??
Trap and I were both very tired, so we headed back to the hotel. I had to pack, since we had to check out and leave the hotel at 5:30am the next morning. One more day of Nationals to go....
Day 5: Hybrid Run, Challengers & Finals
Goodbye, hotel!
Um, Mom, it's REALLY early....
Our final "guaranteed" run was a Hybrid Run--Trapper was really moving. I had to do a rear cross after the double which cost us time on a wide turn, and Trapper nearly ended up on my lap (LOL!) on the front cross before the A-frame, but we got it done! And we placed 7th, which was a huge improvement over 11th, 13th & 14th in our other runs.
HOWEVER, the question remained, was it good enough to get into Challengers? The way it works is that the top 3 dogs overall go to Finals and then the next group that wasn't quite good enough to get into Finals, but were close qualify for Challengers. Only the top dog from Challengers moves into Finals. I knew that at 12, Trapper wasn't going to be in the top 3 to go to Finals, but it would be SOOO amazing if he qualified to go to Challengers. This is his 2nd trip to Nationals (he went last year at 11), and I was SOOO hoping he would make it into Challengers for the 2nd year in a row. But, I tried to prepare myself that it might not happen. He had been undergoing chemo for the last 5 months, and he was 12. No matter what, it had been an amazing journey. And to compete at the National Agility Championship and have 4 perfect runs was something to be very proud of. Now I just had to watch the screen and wait.....Dogs who made it to Finals had an "F" by their names and those who made it into Challengers had a "C" by their names....
I waited awhile, watching to see whether Trapper had made it into Challengers...then I couldn't stand it anymore so Trapper and I headed out for some photo ops...
The weather turned cold on our last day in Tulsa, so I snuggled up to Trap for
this picture after our Hybrid run.
The Colorado contingent had the most amazing decorations!!
Look at all of those amazing Colorado agility dogs!
This is an "on-the-ground" shot in the main arena. Just makes me so proud of my little buddy!
Go Team Colorado!!
My most awesome agility instructor--Thanks, Coach Kelly!!
WE MADE IT INTO CHALLENGERS!!!! Trapper finished 6th out of 35 dogs!!
I was so, so, so happy that Trapper had made it into Challengers! And to end up 6th in the country in his class...WOW!! So proud of my boy!! Now to walk the course....
It felt so great to be one of hte few teams to make it to the Challengers run, and we had a great time. Unfortunately for our score, Trapper slipped as he ran around me on the start line, so he was about a half a stride behind as we started. He gets nervous if he's too far behind me (such a velcro boy!), and he took off for the first jump too early, and dropped the first bar. This meant we wouldn't qualify on the run, which was a bummer. However, if you're going to drop a bar, it's always better to drop the first bar than the last, because then you can enjoy the rest of the run. Dropping the last bar is just heartbreaking. As you can see from the video, once I got my head back on, we had a really nice run. It's unlikely that at 12 years old Trapper would have been the fastest dog in Challengers, so even with a clean run this probably would have been our last run at Nationals. It was such a joy, such an honor, and such a privilege to spend this time with Trapper!!
Trapper with his "haul" :)
Tired boy!
Yummy treat for an amazing Nationals!
Exhausted and ready to sleep--in Wichita
Squirrel!!
WHAT?!
Tired but happy Trapper
Awww...snuggle bunny!!
Day 6: Headed home!
Trapper & I were both tired for the final day home, and I have to admit, it was a bittersweet day. I enjoyed the trip immensely, but was struck by the reality that Trapper's life is limited--he will not live forever............ However, as a dear friend said, "A dog who just finished #6 in the country doesn't sound like he's got one foot in the grave!!" So true, and so the journey continues........
